It's Been Too Long
by elphiefanatic
Summary: A Maureen/Joanne break up story. MoJo. I don't know what the rating should be  I'm not good at that stuff
1. A Reaquaintance

**A/N: I do not own RENT. I wish I did. These chapters will be shorter, but anyway, you'll understand the story completely once you get to the 3rd chapter.**

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Maureen leaned over her book, her brown curls shielding her face from Joanne's view. She was still as beautiful as Joanne remembered, maybe more so. She squinted as if unsure whether or not she had read correctly.

"Maureen," Joanne tried. Maureen whipped her head up, a brief smile flashing across her face. Her eyes dulled when she realized it was Joanne. She turned back to the book. "Maureen, I-"

"Lauren!" called Maureen. Her voice was still loud and clear, but something had changed. A blonde skipped over to them. She reminded Joanne of Maureen before they broke up. Lauren kissed Maureen's nose and hugged her.

"Hey, Honeybear." Joanne winced. Only _she _was allowed to call Maureen that - not Lauren! She reminded herself that she wasn't with Maureen anymore and regained her composure.

"Hey, Pookie," responded Maureen, smiling. This caused another flinch from Joanne. "Let's go home."

"One second, sweetie." Lauren frowned for a minute, looking like a lost puppy. "Who's that, baby?" She pointed at Joanne.

"No one," muttered Maureen. "Not anymore."

"What's that?"

"I'm Joanne Jefferson; I own Jefferson and Jefferson." Seeing the smaller girls confusion, Joanne added, "I'm a lawyer."

"Ohhhhh!" Lauren said, her perky face lighting up. "Wow, you must be loaded."

"Laur, let's go!" Maureen begged, grabbing the wheels of her wheelchair and trying to roll herself forward. The book dropped off of her lap. She swore, reaching desperately for the book.

"I'm Lauren Johnson."

"Not if you don't get me out of here!" wailed Maureen, finally snatching the book, accidentally flashing Joanne the cover :_ Musical Scripts for the Wannabe Actress._

"Lauren J-Johnson?" Joanne asked, her voice cracking.

"Yeah," Lauren grinned. "Pookie and me just got married after the... accident." She looked down at Maureen, who was thrashing, trying to fling herself away. "Sorry, Joanne, I gotta go. Mo, come on, baby, calm down, we're going home. Bye, Joanne."

"Bye, Lauren. Nice to meet you."

"Yeah, you too, Joanne. See you around!" Lauren wheeled Maureen away.

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**I hope you liked it!**


	2. A Thought

Joanne slowly hung up her jacket. She trudged up the stairs to rest at her desk, her head falling into her hands. She rustled through some papers until she found a piece of paper. It was sheet music she had written. At the top, in her careful script, it read: _For Maureen._

She tested a pen on a scrap of paper and tested some words on her tongue.

_"And suddenly, my suspenders are too tight,  
Without you, my Maureen, something's not right,  
And I am getting colder.  
It's a chip on my shoulder._

_Without you, my life is expendable,  
Now you're gone, my dad said I'm less dependable,  
And at night, I cry myself to sleep."_

It would sound so much better coming from Maureen's mouth. Maureen had a way of twisting words until they flowed, making everything bad in the world disappear. That's why she did her protests - only she could pull off something like that.

But Maureen would never read this, Joanne would never let that happen. Maureen was gone, and if Joanne reacted like this, writing depressing songs everytime she saw the girl, Joanne could only hope she was gone for good.

Joanne logged onto her email, shoving the music under a stack of papers. She had several emails, most from her coworkers. She opened the first one.

From: Cindy; .com  
To: Joanne; .com

Subject: were r u jo?

were the heck r u jo? u havent answered ur cell, ive emailed u lik 50 times, n u havent responded! wats up? plezzzz email back!

-cindy carter

She thought about replying, but changed her mind. Instead, she found her bedroom curled up in a ball, and cried herself to sleep, still wearing her suspenders, button-down shirt, slacks, and shoes.


	3. A Memory

"She came back," Maureen sobbed. Lauren stroked her hair, carefully braiding the curls back into an elegant French braid. "She- she came back..."

"I know, baby," Lauren whispered, holding Maureen close and putting her face in Maureen's hair, inhaling the smell of strawberries.

"I never told you about Joanne..."

"That's okay. Do you want to tell me, Honeybear?"

"I need to."

"Okay, c'mon, let's go over to the couch, it's comfier. Just remember, sweetheart, if you ever need to stop, just... just let me know, baby, and I'll understand, okay?" Maureen nodded, letting Lauren scoop her into her wheelchair and push her towards the couch. When they were settled, Maureen started.

"It really started with Mark, I guess. We dated for a while, but there was nothing special, you know? He never looked at me, unless it was behind that dinky little camera of his. So I flirted. With everyone, boys, girls, anything that would look at me. Even if they couldn't see... me... they would look at me, talk, flirt, ask me out. All I was was a pretty face."

"The prettiest," Lauren agreed, tying up her hair.

"Well, then I dumped Mark." Maureen giggled a little.

"What's so funny?"

"The way I dumped him." Maureen giggled again. "I got so sick of that freaking camera... I snatched it out of his hands. He came to get it, but he's so scrawny, I could outrun him and fend him off. Then, some of Mark's friends from this film camp he went to, they came around and... it was really funny... they start talking all cult-like and they're like, 'Do not insult the Power of the Camera' and I laughed, so they started to attack me. Mark was just screaming 'Don't hurt my baby!' At first I thought he was talking to me, but then I realized he was referring to the camera. Joanne yanked the geeks off of me, handed Mark his camera, and took me home. I broke things off with Mark the next day. I realized I really loved Joanne, so we dated, you know, but I couldn't break my habit of flirting, so every other day, we broke up... and then we got engaged... and it all happened so fast... one minute I was talking to the lady serving wine, trying to ignore the fuzzies in my head from the drinks, the next, Joanne and I are breaking up. We got together again, and then her dad died and she needed to take over Jefferson and Jefferson, meaning she had to transfer to Seattle. I wanted to go with, but she said she didn't want me out on the streets or whatever until she found us a place. I knew she meant she didn't want me to blow it. I understood, I mean, I'm _me._ I told her to call me when she was ready, and she did. A month later. I was in an off-Broadway show, though, and I couldn't miss it. There were going to be talent scouts there and everything! I couldn't just leave." A tiny tear traced down Maureen's cheek, to her lips. "I tried to explain, tried to tell her that as soon as I could, I'd get the heck out of there and be with her. But she didn't care. She settled down in Seattle, and when I came up after the show, she didn't care anymore."

Maureen closed her eyes, drawing in a shaky breath.

"I made it back to New York, and tried to forget about her. Then, one day, I got hit by a truck. I don't remember much about then, but I know I had a punctured lung, other crap like that, and then I went into a coma. When I woke up, the first face I saw was Joanne's. She was begging me to give her another chance... I didn't listen. I told her to go away. She listened. I was put in this wheelchair, but without Joanne to keep me in line, I didn't listen to the doctor's instructions. That's why I'm still in the chair. I can't act again, unless I go into surgery, but I don't want that. That's why I read the plays - I can't act, but I can wish." Maureen frowned. "That's all, I guess."

"Maureen..."

"I can't do this. I can't stay with you. I'm sorry, Lauren. I love you, but..."

"I love you, too, Maureen, but I understand." Lauren leaned in to give Maureen a soft kiss on the nose before she carried Maureen back to her chair, packed her things, and went back to find her brother's appartment. Maureen felt bad about kicking Lauren out, but she just couldn't handle someone who would try to replace Joanne.

Not now.

Not ever.


	4. A Meeting

Lauren brushed a strand of blonde hair out of her face and flipped out her cell phone. She quickly dialled Roger's number and pressed it to her ear. Roger was Lauren's ex-boyfriend, before he met April, and it turned out her had become best friends with Maureen and her friends.

"Hey, Laur!"

"Hey, Roger, how are you?"

"Good, how are you?"

"Good. Um, I need a phone number."

"Sure, whose?"

"Um, Joanne Jefferson."

There was a pause.

"Jo's number?"

"Yeah."

"Um, okay..."

"Hello, this is Joanne Jefferson."

"Joanne! Um, hi, it's Lauren. Lauren Johnson. We met the other day?"

"Oh, yeah, Maureen's... wife."

"Yeah. I... um, we broke up. I just thought you should know. When we were first dating... when I met her, it was through Roger. She never left her room, couldn't sleep, when she did, she just... screamed. She never ate or anything, and had to undergo hospitalization. It isn't your fault, but I just don't know how she's going to react to you reappearing in her life. She still loves you, Joanne, I can tell. And I can help you guys get back together - you're a good pair. But if I do, you have to promise me something."

"What?"

"Don't ever break her heart again. Because this time, she'd be even more alone. And she literally might die without you."

"Thank you, Lauren. So much."

"Hey, I'm like Maureen was - I flirt with anyone. I know how she thinks. I've been there before. I know what she'll do, what she wants... what she needs. Go to Angel's grave at 5:30, okay?"

"Okay."

Joanne knelt beside Angel's grave, tracing the letters on the stone with one gloved finger.

"Oh," came a voice. Joanne turned.

"Maureen,"

Maureen was on crutches, and Joanne could tell that every step pained her. Her curls were in a French braid, her pale cheeks pink, her chin slightly covered in her scarf.

"Let me help," Joanne said softly.

"I'm good," Maureen replied, her voice breaking.

"Okay." Joanne watched Maureen try to move for a while.

"Um, actually, Joanne... could you help me?" Her voice was broken and soft, almost bringing Joanne to tears.

Joanne stood. "I need you to trust me, okay? On the count of 3, drop the crutches." Joanne wrapped her arms tightly around Maureen's stomach.

"What?" Maureen shrieked.

"1... 2... 3!" Joanne lifted Maureen as she dropped her crutches. They fell to the ground. Maureen yelped as Joanne started to move, digging her fingers into the lawyer's hair. "I got you, Mo."

Joanne gently laid Maureen next to Angel's tombstone. Maureen's jean clad legs sprawled out behind her, snow gathered on her black coat, and she propped herself up with one hand in her hair. She brushed some snow off of Angel's grave, mumbling. It took Joanne a minute to realize she was talking to Angel.

"Ange, why did you leave me? I... I needed you, baby, we all did. I don't want to sound selfish, but me and Collins the most. He loved you, and without you... I was alone. I remember you saying Joanne and I were forever, but you only lived to see us break up. I'm sorry, you were wrong. We did get back together, baby, but then we broke up again."

Joanne listened as Maureen recounted her version of the story, from Joanne to Lauren.

"And... I need you more than ever now, baby. Because now, I really am alone," Maureen whispered.

A tear rolled down Joanne's cheek. Maureen's face was soaked. Joanne leaned over to try to brush her tears away. Maureen didn't seem to notice. Instead, she began to sing softly.

_"When all of the beauty turns to pain,  
When all of the madness falls like rain,  
As long as we crash and we collide,  
We will be gorgeous, you and I."_

Maureen let out a choked laugh. "And Angel, baby, you were more gorgeous than any of them."

Maureen finally seemed to notice Joanne, and turned.

"Joanne, help me up, please."

Joanne collected Maureen's crutches, lifting Maureen to put her on them again. Maureen smiled weakly, her earrings dangling as she walked as fast as she could up the hill.

"Maureen!" Joanne called. She stood, trying to catch up. Maureen didn't look back. Joanne stepped forward, her toe snagging on a root, tripping, falling backwards, hitting her head on Angel's tombstone. And then there was black.


	5. A Friend

**A/N: A really short chapter, this is. Yes, that was my failed attempt at a Yoda Moment. Enjoy.**

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_Hey, honey, how are you?_

_Who is this?_

_You don't recognize me? _A figure stepped out of the white mist. Fake black hair swung to her chin.

_Angel? Oh my God, Angel!_

_Yeah, it's me, baby. How's Maureen? I always said you belonged together._

_We... I didn't listen._

_Awww, really? Oh, well, it's not fault, baby._

_But I hurt her! Physically and emotionally!_

_Physically?_

_She was hit by a truck._

_Ouch._

_Yeah._

_Well, only you can fix it, honey._

_Me?_

_Yes, you._

_Will you stay to help me?_

_Well, unless you want to bash your head every time you need something, no._

_But I need-_

_Lauren can help you._

_Lauren? Lauren Johnson?_

_Well, now she's Lauren Harris again._

_I see you've been keeping up on your current events._

_Duh, I have to see my friends! But I can't believe I missed Maureen getting hurt!_

_You were probably busy staring at Collins and trying to use ESP to tell him not to fall in love with someone._

_Okay, mayyyyybe._

_But, wait, Lauren?_

_Yeah! She reminds me of a mix of you and Mo. Flirtatious, crazy, fun, like Mo, and -_

_Wait, are you implying I'm not fun?_

_You aren't the drama queen, Jo._

_Thank God. _Angel laughed at Joanne's words.

_And she's smart and trustworthy, like you._

_Thanks, Angel._

_Any way, I gotta go. You go back, you find our Mo, and you help her, okay girl?_

_Okay. Thanks Angel._

_Anything for my friends, honey._


	6. An Injury

**A/N: Another short chapter.**

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Joanne blinked.

"Oh, thank God," came a voice. Mimi and Roger were standing over her.

"Meems, Rog, what...?"

"Maureen called us, sent us here to you. You were knocked out. Mo wasn't here. We don't know where she is."

"Oh my God!" Joanne began panicking at the news that Maureen was missing. "We have to find her!"

"I know! Mark and Lauren are looking already." Mimi told her.

"Okay. What about Collins?"

"He's looking too."

"Okay, calm down, Joanne," Joanne breathed to herself. "We'll find her, she's okay..." Her breathing evened out and she stood. "Let's go look."

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**5 hours later...**

Joanne's phone rang.

"Joanne Jefferson."

"Jo, it's Mark..." Mark said.

"Give me the phone, you hold her a minute!" hissed Lauren in the background. "Hey, Jo, it's Lauren. We found Mo... we need your help."

"I'm on my way." Joanne took off.

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"Oh my God, Maureen!" screamed Joanne, looking at the pale girl's mangled body. Her thin face was bruised and her arms were bleeding. Her legs were the most startling - twisted in ways you wouldn't think were possible. Her crutches had disappeared, and her wheelchair was still back at her house. Joanne, not one to cry, fell to her knees and rolled Maureen onto her back, burying her face in Maureen's very messy French braid.

"We didn't want to move her," whispered Lauren, her mascara streaky. She had Mark's jacket over her shoulders, Mark was sort of hugging her and leaning on her in a way that made it look like he was falling onto her. He was catching all of this on his camera.

"Mark, put that thing away," hissed Joanne, her fingers stroking Maureen's cold face, gently brushing gravel and dirt away from open cuts, her fingers soon sticky with blood. She closed her eyes.

"Lauren?" she asked, her bloodied fingers hovering over the ground.

"Yeah?" the blonde asked. Her voice was choked.

"Get my phone out of my pocket and call an ambulance."

Lauren reached into Joanne's coat pocket, pulled out the lawyer's cell phone, and called for an ambulance as she was told.


	7. An Explanation

**A/N: The story of what happened to Maureen is true. It happened to Amy Racina. The thing about endorphins is factual as well.**

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"Benny?" Mimi asked. She was in the waiting room, gently rocking a sobbing Joanne. Lauren was asleep, though tears still rolled down her tan face, making her cheeks sparkle. Mark had laid his jack over her as a makeshift blanket and had claimed the chair next to hers as his new bed. Roger was pacing, and Collins was staring at a wall, mumbling things to Angel.

"And Alison," whispered a girl, trying not to wake anyone. She stepped out from behind Benny. Her long, straight, dark brown hair was loose, held off of her deeply tanned face with a headband. She wore a spaghetti strap blue top and tight jeans.

"Alison?" Joanne managed. Alison smiled weakly.

"Yeah."

"You know about... Maureen?"

"Yeah."

"Is anyone here for Maureen Johnson?" The doctor's sharp voice woke everyone.

Alison, Benny, Mimi, Joanne, Roger, Collins, Mark, and Lauren all stood and said, "I am."

"Um, just family,"

"We are," they spoke in unison.

"Wow, this is weird," Roger finally said.

"Yeah."

"How about you pick two of you at a time?" advised the doctor.

"Okay, um, Joanne, definitely..." Mimi said. Everyone murmured their consent.

"And Lauren," Joanne said softly. Lauren walked over to her, taking her hand.

"Are you sure, Jo? You can go alone, if you want."

"No, you should come."

"Thank you."

They followed the doctor into a room. Joanne stifled a sob again, and Lauren clenched her jaw, trying not to cry out.

Maureen was on the bed, bandaged from head to toe. Her face was half covered in a sort of cast so that one eye was covered and only a few stray curls of hair could be seen. Both of her legs were covered. She was, surprisingly, awake. She attempted to raise a hand, but could not move it well due to the bulky cast.

"Hey," she rasped out. "Doctor, what level of suckage am I at now?"

"You've broken a lot of bones. Your jaw was fractured on the left side, and you cracked your skull. Your right femur, left ulna, right radius, and scapula are all broken. Your knee shattered, disintegrating in some parts. Your thigh is broken, and you tore some muscle tissue in your foot. Your legs were already in bad condition, so you had to go through surgery to fix that."

"Oh, wonderful," she sighed. Her eye searched the room. "Lauren, can you get me some water?" The doctor left and Lauren fetched Maureen a cup of water. Maureen tried to lift it, but couldn't.

"Let me help," Joanne pleaded, not waiting for a response before raising it to Maureen's lips.

"Thanks, Joanne. Did you guys know that they wanted to wire my mouth shut? I wouldn't let them. What good am I if I can't talk?"

"Yeah," Joanne managed. Lauren's phone started to ring. Maureen and Joanne watched her as she turned bright red.

"Um, Lauren? Your pocket's trying to sing." Maureen frowned. "It's a little off key."

"I'll be right back," Lauren blushed and exited. As soon as she was gone, Joanne flew to Maureen and hugged her. Maureen stiffened, wincing in pain.

"Oh, sorry, Mo!" Joanne gasped, withdrawing.

"'S okay."

"What happened?"

"I was hiking." Maureen explained. Joanne gave her a look. "What? I was! I used to hike all of the time with my friends before I met the bohos. It calmed me. Well, I went hiking with my crutches – and before you say anything, yes, I know it was stupid, okay? I lost my footing and accidentally dropped one. I can't stand without both, so I fell. It was 60 feet. I was alone; didn't know what to do. I didn't feel any pain – the doctor says that my endorphins blocked off the pain so I could survive. I had no knee, I broke my hip in two places, all that bad stuff. But I felt nothing, so I bound up my knee and used my arms to drag myself to a trail, where I could be found. It took two days. I thought I was going to pass out when I came across a river, but I slogged across it. I finally got to a trail and was delivered by airplane to the hospital."

"Oh my God, Mo," Joanne whispered. Maureen closed her eyes and leaned against the pillow, out of breath. "I'm sorry I left you. I should have stayed." Joanne clutched Maureen's hand.

"It isn't your fault; I was stubborn."

"Yeah, but you would be unemployed had you left, unlike me. Plus, you have so many friends that love you here."

"So do you."

"Well, I don't need them to keep me from falling off of a cliff, do I?" Joanne teased. Maureen let out a hacking cough. The door swung open, and the doctor came back in.

"Hello again, Mrs. Johnson!"

"It's Miss," Maureen wheezed between coughs.

"Excuse me?"

"It's _Miss _Maureen Johnson," Maureen answered, closing her eyes and leaning back again.

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**I hope you liked it. Please review!**


	8. A Sister

**A/N: Okay, so I've been hugely busy - I had this major Latin exam, and I had to practice for our musical at school, which we just found out is in SIX WEEKS! Also, I went to London for a week, and came back to find out that my computer has this virus and wouldn't give me Internet connection... grrr... and now, I have STREP! So, right now, my life is fan-freaking-tastic.**

**Okay, sorry, I just had my little meltdown there. I WILL update soon this time, so long as that annoyance they call reality doesn't come knocking on my door. Without further ado, I present you with Chapter Whatever-it-is.**

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"Mo, sweetie?" Lauren stepped tentatively into Maureen's hospital room.

"Hey, Laur," Maureen rasped.

"Hey. Uh, there's somebody I want you to meet."

"Okay." Lauren turned.

"C'mon," she told someone Maureen couldn't see. A woman stepped into Maureen's room, grasping Lauren's hand. She had a high blonde ponytail and gray eyes.

"You're Maureen!" The woman looked Maureen up and down, beaming.

"Yeah. Um, Mo, this is my little sister Claire." Lauren smiled.

"Hey," Maureen greeted.

"Hi hi!" squealed Claire, bounding over to Maureen's bed. "I'm Claire!"

"Nice to meet you, Claire."

"Really?" Claire grinned wider. "Thanks!"

"Claire's autistic. She's 19," Lauren explained, stroking Claire's hair fondly.

"So you're Mimi's age?" Maureen asked.

"Who's Mimi? I like her name!"

"I told you about Meems earlier, remember?" Lauren reminded.

"Oh, yeah! Mimi, Deemi, Keemi, Reeni..." Claire rambled off into rhyming.

Maureen smiled at the last one, which sounded like Collins' name for her, Reena.

"Do you like Skittles?" Claire asked suddenly, looking around the room. Lauren reached over and tugged gently on her sister's wavy blonde ponytail.

"Yeah, do you?" Maureen asked, but Claire seemed to have moved on.

"What stories do you have about the bohos?"

"Which one?"

Claire scrinched up her face, chewing on her bottom lip.

"Joanne."

Maureen paled, and Lauren said, "Claire, that's not the best choice."

"But you NEVER tell me about her!"

"Yeah, well, Mo won't either."

"I will," Maureen said, surprising herself. "I'll tell you about our commitment ceremony, if that's okay." She glanced over at Lauren, who was frowning, but continued. "Well, Joanne and I were celebrating, and I went over to get some champagne or something. The lady was pretty nice, so we started chatting, and she started talking about her boyfriend, Marcello, who was on a business trip to Puerto Rico. She told me that Marcello had given her the necklace she was wearing, so I leaned in to see it. Joanne saw this, and thought I was flirting and stuff, so she got annoyed. She asked what I was doing, and I told her we were just talking. She didn't believe me, so I said it again. She said, 'Maureen, please do not do this today.' I asked some guy to hold my glass, and I got up in her face. 'You know what, Miss Ivy League? I can't take much more of this,' I said. She looked shocked, but I was mad. 'This obsessive compulsive control-freak paranoia,' I told her. She was confused, so I gave examples of when she was being all up in my business. She got mad when I mentioned this club, and she reminded me that I was flirting with a woman in rubber. I told her, really loudly, ethat there will always be women in rubber flirting with me!"

_"Give me a break!" Maureen felt everyone staring at her, but she didn't care. "Every single day I walk down the street I hear people say, 'Baby's so sweet.' Ever since puberty everybody stares at me - boys, girls, I can't help it, baby! So be kind and don't loose your mind - just remember that I'm your baby. Take me for what I am. Who I was meant to be. And if you give a damn, take me, baby! Or leave me." Maureen climbed onto the table, draping her jacket over the ice statue's shoulders, sneaking a look at her friend's, nearly laughing at Mimi's stunned face. "A tiger in a cage can never see the sun. This diva needs her stage, baby, let's have fun! You are the one I choose. Folks would KILL to fill your shoes! You know you love the limelight, too, now, baby. So be mine, and don't waste my time-" Maureen had run around the table, lifting her shirt slightly to bare her flat stomach. "-saying, 'Oh, honeybear, are you still my, my, my baby?' Take me for what I am! Who I was meant to be, and if you give a damn, take me, baby, or leave me." Joanne had gone up the stairs and looked back at Maureen, who was smirking slightly. "No way can I be what I'm not, but hey! Don't you want your girl hot?" Joanne had rolled her eyes at the sight of Maureen. "Don't fight! Don't lose your head!" Maureen crawled up the stairs to Joanne. "'Cuz every night, who's in your bed? Who?" Maureen pouted. "Kiss, Pookie." Joanne rolled her eyes again, pulling Maureen up._

_"It won't work. I look before I leap. I love margins and disciplines. I make lists in my sleep. Baby, what's my sin? Never quit, I follow through. I hate mess, but I love you." Joanne ran her hand up Maureen's thigh as Maureen thought about the last statement, which seemed contradictory. "What's to do with my impromtu baby? So be wise, 'cuz this girl satisfies. You got a prize, so don't compromise!" Joanne threw off her jacket. Maureen caught it, folding in in her arms. "Take me for what I am!"_

_"A control freak," Maureen said._

_"Who I was meant to be!"_

_"A snob, yet over-attentive!"_

_"And if you give a damn,"_

_"A lovable, droll geek!"_

_"Take me, baby, or leave me!"_

_"And anal retentive!" shouted Maureen, bitterly, following Joanne into the pool room._

_"That's it!" they both cried._

_"The straw that breaks my back!" Joanne said._

_"I quit!" they said in unison._

_"Unless you take it back..." Joanne said, but Maureen wasn't going to give in._

_"Women!" they both scoffed._

_"What is it about them?" Maureen asked._

_"Can't live with them or without them! Take me for what I am! Who I was meant to be! And if you give a damn, take me, baby, or leave me. Take me, baby, or leave me!" they cried together. Maureen had somehow made her way over the pool table to get nose to nose with Joanne. She walked to the side of the table._

_"Guess I'm leavin'!" they shouted, turning in different directions. Maureen raised one hand dramatically as she strode out of the room, past Mark, Mimi, Roger, and her parents._

_"I'm gone!"_

"It's okay, Mo," said Lauren, giving her ex-girlfriend a hug as the brunette started crying.

"Tell a happier story!" exclaimed Claire.

"Okay..." Maureen sniffled, leaning back. "Um, well, you guys saw my Over the Moon protest on TV? Well, after that, we all went to the Life. Benny was there, and he was with his girlfriend, Muffy's, dad, Mr. Grey. We wanted them to leave, so when Benny told us, and I quote, 'Bohemia, Bohemia's a fallacy in your head. This is Calcutta. Bohemia is dead,' we all started having a mock funeral. I jumped on the table and started dancing and stuff... but, anyway, Joanne, well, I kissed her, right in front on Mr. Grey. He looked stunned, so I'm all, 'Hey, mister! She's my sister!' And then later, he's like, 'Sisters?' and I smirked, and I'm like, 'We're close.' We ended the night there with all of us kissing, Collins and Angel, Mimi and Roger, me and Joanne, and honestly, I didn't see Mark, but he was probably making out with his camera. I don't know. There aren't really many happy stories to tell. I mean, Jo and I broke up every week."

"What about Collins?"

"Oh, he's cool. I remember this one time, when we were walking, and Collins sees this guy getting beaten up, and he's like, poor dude, so we go over and kick some bully butt, and then, they run away, finally, but not before pinching Collins' wallet. It was funny, 'cuz the only thing in his wallet was a picture of all of us - Ang, Meems, Jo, Rog, Marky, him, and me. Mark had some homeless guy take it, and so I promised the homeless guy that I'd protest for him, hence the Over the Moon thing. Anyway, we got the kid that was being bullied cleaned up, and Collins looked all surprised. Later, he told me that the kid we saved had bullied him in school. I was kinda surprised that he still helped the kid after that, but that's Collins for you. Heart of gold, just like Angel." Claire smiled.

"Well, Claire has to get home," said Lauren, giving Maureen's forehead a soft kiss. "I'll be right back, Maur."

"Bye, Maureen!" squealed Claire, skipping out of the room. Lauren lingered behind.

"Thanks, Mo. You're a good influence on her. She's never acted that normal before."

"She's a cute kid, Laur. Take care of her." Maureen hugged Lauren again, and the blonde flounced out. Lauren was on her way back to Maureen when her phone started to ring. She jammed her hand into her pocket, silently cursing herself for wearing Maureen's skin-tight jeans. There was no way she was getting that phone out of her pocket. She sprinted down the hallway, knowing only Maureen could get it out. It had stopped ringing by the time the brunette could wedge it out of the pocket, but Lauren still checked her latest missed call. It was from Joanne. Lauren brushed her lips against Maureen's forehead and moved away to call Joanne back.

"Hey, it's Lauren."

"_Lauren?" _came Joanne's panicked voice. "Ohmigod, um, I need you to get the doctor's to get Mo _out of there _and to the park across the street. Like, quick. I'd call her myself, but I can't talk to her now."

"Calm down. What's wrong?"

"It's Collins," was Joanne's weepy reply. "He's dead."

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**Dun dun dun... *cackles evilly***


	9. A Miracle

**A/N: Oh my gosh, I'm SUCH a horrible person! I took forever to update, and I left you with THAT! I'm sorry! Okay, so a recap of the last chapter:**

**RECAP: Mo is recovering from her "hiking" injury, and Lauren brings in her autistic sister, Claire, to meet Maureen. Maureen and Claire are instantly friends, and Maureen tells Claire about Joanne and Collins. Claire leaves, and Lauren tells Mo that she's a good influence on Claire. Lauren then gets a phone call, and finds out that it's Joanne, who says Collins is dead.**

**IMPORTANT:**

**1) I have made an adjustment (very minor, so minor, I'm not going to change it in the last chapter) to the place that Lauren and Mo are supposed to meet the bohos. They are now meeting at the loft.**

**2) As a reminder, Mo had the surgery, so she can walk, but she's in the wheelchair this chapter so she gives her legs time to fully recover.**

**3) Do you guys like my recap of the previous chapter? That's something I just put in this chapter, so please let me know.**

**4) If you're reading this story, PLEASE, just drop me a review. It would be amazing. I don't even care how long. It could be just, "hi" or "this sucks" or anything at all.**

* * *

"Oh my God," was all Lauren could manage. "Oh my God."

"What?" Maureen looked confused.

"C'mon, Mo," Lauren choked out. "We're getting out of here."

"Yes!" Maureen cheered. "Hospital jell-o freaking SUCKS! Like, are we prisoners or something?" Maureen laughed and tugged at the many tubes connecting her to various machines, swiftly removing them and yanking out the IV.

"Maur!" Lauren scolded.

"Laur!" Maureen mimicked, giggling. Lauren helped her into her wheelchair and the pair carefully snuck around the nurses and doctors, only to find the exit blocked by a nurse making out the doctor who tended the man in the room next to Maureen's. Lauren tossed her hair and cleared her throat.

"Excuse us," she said apologetically, her voice slightly choked. "I'm Lauren Harris, and this is my girlfriend Delaney Thompson."

Maureen shot Lauren a curious look, but tossed her hair and went along with it. Lauren was lying about Maureen's name so that the doctor wouldn't know she was supposed to be a patient.

"Uh, sorry," squeaked the doctor, staring at Lauren and Maureen.

"Yeah, sorry for being in your way," said the nurse, blushing. "Uh, I'm Rose. C'mon, Harry!" Rose nudged the doctor back, letting Lauren and Maureen through. As they passed, Lauren "accidentally" dropped a scrap of paper on the ground.

"You're cute," she breathed, sweeping past. "Call me."

And Lauren and "Delaney" swept out, leaving Rose and Harry wondering which of the two of them Lauren had been addressing.

* * *

"Lauren?" Maureen asked, sleep making her voice low and muffled, with a slight slur.

"Yeah?" Lauren said, determined not to cry as she led Maureen to the door of the loft.

"You never told me... why are we here?" Maureen yawned. Lauren finally dissolved into tears. "Shhh, it's okay, baby, you can tell me."

"It's not okay!" Lauren cried. "Collins died!"

"What?" Maureen pounded furiously on the door to the loft. Mimi opened the door, and the tears streaming down the Latina's face confirmed Lauren's statement. "No! Collins!" Maureen fled into the loft, wheeling her chair to the silver table that had been dubbed Mimi's Table. Collins was on the table, his usually dark face pretty pale. Maureen let out an anguished wail, collapsing onto his chest, her hair sending a wave of strawberry scent out into the room.

Lauren's lips were pressed together tightly, opening minimally to suck in shaky breaths. Tears streaked pale lines across her tan flesh.

Joanne was staring wordlessly out the window, occasionally clenching her eyes shut, trying to keep the inevitable tears from falling.

Mark was staring at his camera, stuck between video-taping this emotional moment and seeming insensitive or just crying.

Mimi was clutching her knees, rocking back and forth, whimpering softly, and mumbling words in Spanish that were addressing to Collins.

Roger was nowhere to be seen, although strange sobs told everyone that he was in the bathrooom where they had found April.

Alison and Benny weren't present, but all of the bohos had a mutual agreement that, as neither had really known Collins, it was best that way.

Maureen's sobs finally reduced to heavy breathing, and then she shouted, her head shooting up, her green eyes glistening.

"GUYS!" she shrieked. "He's breathing!" She laughed. "Collins is breathing!"

* * *

**HE LIVES! *does happy dance*...*scares small children* (.") (".) - HUGZ! I really need to get the MoJo love started... Darn you, Lauren! I don't even know you! I just randomly wrote you into this story! No, seriously, I just realized I have no idea who Lauren is. I just needed Maureen to have another girlfriend. But the problem is, I kinda like Lauren. Oh! Me gots an ideasies!**

**IMPORTANT:**

**5) If you're reviewing, please include one trait you don't like about people, like selfishness or something. THANKS!**

**wow... my notes basically doubled the size of this chapter.**


	10. A Kiss

**A/N: Standardized tests want to kill me... Anyways, I got some MoJo going on in this chapter. Yeah. Okay.**

* * *

"Mo..." Collins mumbled weakly.

"Shhhh, Collins, it's going to be okay, you're going to be okay," Maureen said, laughing through her tears. She had to move so Mimi could drape a ratty blue blanket over him.

"Still cold..." he managed feebly. Maureen scooted back in her chair.

"I'll be back. I'm gonna go get some more blankets for Collins." She touched his chin. "Don't die on me again, okay?"

"I'll help you," said Joanne quietly, her voice slightly hoarse.

"No, that's really okay..." Maureen frowned and turned her head away from Joanne.

"Mo, please." Joanne looked at Maureen with imploring eyes. "I... I can't stay here." Her voice cracked slightly.

"Fine." Maureen wheeled towards the door, Joanne following her. Joanne helped with the door, and pushed Maureen's chair outside. Maureen cursed the snow as her wheels lodged in a lump of it. "Why is it always winter when people DIE?" she asked, after a particularly long string of curse words.

"Maureen..." Joanne said softly. Maureen tucked her hair behind one ear.

"Yeah?"

"Why won't you look at me?"

"Well, Jo, in case you hadn't noticed, I am confined to a WHEELCHAIR, and you are currently BEHIND me." Joanne moved around to the front of Maureen's wheelchair. When Maureen looked away, Joanne placed a hand to her cheek and moved the diva's face so she was forced to look into Joanne's eyes.

"Maureen. You know what I mean. You never really talk to me or look at me or anything anymore. I mean, there was that time at the hospital, but -"

"But I was on happy drugs," Maureen finished. Joanne raised her eyebrows. "What? Jo, they freaking _measured _my happiness on a scale of one to ten!"

"Where did you rank?" Joanne asked, not really curious.

"Before or after the happy drugs?"

They shared a moment of laughter, but soon lapsed into an awkward silence as Joanne moved back behind the chair to help get Maureen's wheel loose. Finally, the wheel sprung out of the snow mound, but the momentum sent Maureen tumbling to the ground.

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry, Mo!" Joanne exclaimed.

"It's okay, it's okay…" Maureen reassured the snow. Joanne hurried to Maureen's side, falling to her knees. "Jo, I got it, I'm okay." Joanne watched nervously for a few minutes, chewing on her lip, breaking the skin as Maureen tried to push herself up, chewing on her lip, breaking the skin. Finally, Joanne grabbed Maureen's forearm and lifted it so Maureen's arm was hooked around Joanne's neck. She helped the pale girl up and back into her chair.

"Thank you, Jo," Maureen said sincerely, looking up into Joanne's eyes. She frowned. "You're bleeding… your lip…" Joanne wiped at her lip, missing the spot completely. "No."

Maureen tentatively reached up, brushing her index finger against the bleeding lower lip. To her surprise, Joanne's tongue flicked out and swiped across the pale flesh. Maureen jumped and jerked her finger back down. And then, Joanne was at her side, apologizing, fresh tears springing to her eyes.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I wasn't thinking, I wasn't-" Joanne was cut off by Maureen's lips pressed firmly against hers, warmth flooding over her at the touch. Both pulled back at the same time, both shivering. Something danced across Joanne's eyes. Maureen gave a tentative smile.

"So… what are we gonna tell the others?"


	11. A Mistake

Sorry! I've been the worst updater ever! And this is a really tiny chapter, but I know what's coming next. Hope it doesn't suck!

* * *

"Collins!" shouted Maureen with a giggle, tackling the dark man. It was a few weeks after Collins' near death experience. He was completely recovered and had stolen Mo's magazine. Maureen was officially out of her wheelchair and was dating Joanne secretly. Joanne wouldn't let her tell anyone, because all of the bohemians were rooting for MoJo and she didn't want to get their hopes up. Maureen was coping with this as best as she could, but she was having a tough time not making out with Joanne at every chance she got.

All of the bohos were at the beach. Mark was refereeing a beach volleyball game between a couple of random people who had agreed to let him video-tape them, Joanne had gone back to the car to fetch her sunglasses, Roger was surfing, and the girls (Maureen, Lauren, and Mimi) were tanning. Maureen wasn't allowed to leave because the last time they were at beach, Maureen had terrorized some little kids and gone destroying random sandcastles on her rush to get to the water.

But she was _bored_, and she had promised to meet up with Joanne later, so she turned to Mimi. Lauren was fast asleep, and Mimi was watching Roger.

"Meems, can I go?"

Mimi didn't look up from her view of Roger's newly tan chest. "Hmmm? Yeah, sure, whatever."

Maureen grinned and got up, walking past the group, brushing sand off of her nicely tanned legs. She looked at her flat stomach, smiling at the even tan and the way the powder blue bikini she wore complemented her skin. After a while, she came across a lifeguard. He was deeply tanned and had surfer blonde hair. He was built, with great abs and muscular arms.

"Hello," the lifeguard smirked. Maureen gave him a blinding smile.

"Hi!"

"I'm Justin."

"I'm Maureen."

"So are you really single?"

"Huh?" Maureen tried to act confused, though an awful feeling settled into her stomach.

"Well, I saw you back there, with those guys. I figured none of those guys could be your boyfriend – the scrawny kid doesn't seem your type, the tall guy seemed like a brother to you, and the surfer guy was trying to impress the Latina girl. And the blonde girl wasn't paying you a bit of attention, if you're bi."

"Uh…" Maureen stalled, trying to think. She didn't want to lie, because then he'd probably make moves on her, but she didn't want to break her promise to Joanne. "I'm single!" she finally threw out, panicking.

"Then it's my lucky day." Justin grinned and leaned in. Before Maureen could stop him, their lips were smashed together in an awkward, semi-painful kiss. She made a soft yelp of protest, but that seemed to take that as encouragement and stuck his tongue into her mouth. She finally pulled away, shaking. Tears began falling. It wasn't her fault, but she felt so unfaithful! She glared at him through her tears and ran away.

* * *

Okay, so the next chapter will be coming really quickly! PROMISE!


	12. An Argument

Okay, so this is probably really OOC, but... I know where it's going after this, so bear with me.

* * *

"I found my glasses!" Joanne called loudly, turning back from the car. She was met with the sight of her favorite brunette with her back turned to Joanne, giving the mocha girl a nice view of her butt, barely covered by the triangle of blue bikini. A smile graced Joanne's lips… that is, until Maureen turned to the side, giving Joanne the full view of the admittedly hot lifeguard attached to her pouty red lips. Joanne watched her Honeybear make out with the lifeguard as tears filled her eyes. _Maureen… You promised! You promised! _Joanne put her sunglasses on to hide her teary eyes and she turned and ran away.

Collins, Mark, Roger, Lauren, and Mimi met up at the loft, and Joanne and Maureen remained behind.

"Joanne! Listen to me!" Maureen grabbed Joanne's chin and yanked it so they were face to face. Both had tear tracks on their faces, and Maureen's mascara was streaky. "I love you," Maureen choked out. "It's taken me forever to realize that, but I finally said it. I love you, not Mark, not Justin, not any of those other guys. You."

"But what about Lauren?"

"What?"

"Do you love her?"

Maureen sighed, pulling on her ponytail. She looked tired. "I don't know," she answered finally. "I need time to think about it."

Joanne nodded, trying not to scream in frustration. Maureen pressed her lips to Joanne's. "I love you," Maureen whispered.

"I know, baby. I'm sorry."

"Can we tell the others about us now?" Maureen asked softly.

"No, baby."

"Just Collins?" Maureen asked, pulling away.

"No."

"Benny? He's not even in our group."

"No."

"Are you kidding? Jo, we _never _talk to Benny! No one would know!"

"Maureen, we've been through this before. As soon as we make this official, you'll take it for granted and start cheating again." Joanne shook her head.

"I never cheated on you! It was just harmless flirting for attention, I swear!" Maureen said.

"Oh, yeah, and just harmless kissing for attention, and just harmless _hooking up_ for attention."

"Joanne! No!" shouted Maureen. Joanne strode away, angry again. Maureen followed her into the loft.

"Joanne, can we just talk?" Maureen yelled.

"Uh-oh. MoJo fight," whispered Mimi to Roger.

"There's nothing to talk about!" shouted Joanne.

"Don't yell at me like that, Joanne!"

"_I'll yell however much I want!"_

"_Fine! I'll get back together with Lauren! At least she cares about me!"_

"_Go ahead, see if I care!"_

"Mark, put down the camera, you don't want to be insensitive!" whispered Lauren, covering Mark's camera.

"Sorry," Mark hissed back.

"_Joanne, please! I love you!"_

Maureen smacked Joanne. Joanne looked shocked, but when Maureen laughed, Joanne smacked back. Maureen held her cheek tenderly, her face shocked, before landing a punch to Joanne's stomach. Soon, the two were rolling on the ground, each bleeding, Maureen trying to strangle Joanne, Joanne throwing punches at Maureen' s face. Lauren and Collins ran in at the same time, Collins pulling Maureen away from Joanne, Lauren restraining the lawyer.

"Let go of me, you backstabbing girlfriend stabber!" hissed Joanne, spitting blood onto the floor.

"You were the one who left her," reminded Lauren simply.

"Get offa me, I almost had her!" shouted Maureen, her voice nasally and slurred due to her bloody lip and probably broken nose.

"You love her, Maureen!" Collins said. Maureen shook her head, finally wriggling out of Collins' grip. She limped up in front of Joanne, glaring defiantly into Joanne's eyes.

"I hate you," she whispered in a low, serious voice. Then she turned. "Lauren? Can I stay at your place tonight?"

Her voice sounded small and helpless, and Lauren had to give in.

"Sure, baby." Lauren released Joanne and rushed over to Maureen's side. She helped Maureen limp away, smoothing back the brunette's hair, one tan arm draped around her shoulders. Joanne shook her head and turned.

"I have to be at work tomorrow, I better prepare the Robinson case." She looked at the other bohemians. "What?" she asked. Mark shook his head in disgust and walked away. Mimi winced, but pushed Collins forward.

"Rog, let's go," Mimi pulled Roger back to his room.

"Joanne, Maureen loved you. She said she loved you, and you pushed her away. Jo, I'm Mo's oldest friend. I've known her forever. And I've heard her say 'I love you' once in my life. And that was to you.

"She wouldn't say it to her parents, she hated him. She never told Mark, she didn't love him. I don't know if she told Lauren, but I know she told you. And that's huge for999her. She's Maureen Johnson. She can't commit, she can't agree to settle down, and somehow, she managed to tell you she loved you even after you left her for 4 years.

"You owe her big time, Joanne. If you or she had been anyone else, you would never have a chance of getting back together. But she _is _Mo, and she loves you."

"I'm sorry," Joanne whispered hoarsely.

"I know. She knows. But you have to tell her. She waited for 4 years, Jo. She can't wait forever." Collins sighed. "I'll profess your innocence to Mimi, Roger, and Mark. Mimi and Roger shouldn't be hard to convince, but Mark still thinks he can win Mo back."

"Thanks, Coll." Joanne hugged Collins. "You're a great friend."

Collins smiled a pained smile, and Joanne realized how much it must hurt him to speak of love.

"Oh… Collins, I'm so sorry."

"Go talk to Mo," Collins ordered softly. "You win her back, girl. You win her back."

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Reviews equal MoJo love!


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